About Druidry
Contemporary Druidry is part of the Pagan revival. Druid and Pagan beliefs range from non-theism to animism to (neo-)shamanism to duotheism (a god and a goddess) to monism to polytheism. Most Pagans feel a sense of connection to the land, the Earth, and/or Nature. A number of Druid orders are drawn to ancient sites because they feel connected to their builders and former users. Some Druids consider themselves to be the successors of the ancient druids described by Caesar and others. A key theme in Druidry (particularly at the festival of Samhuinn) is the connection with ancestors, who may be spiritual antecedents rather than ethnic ones.
The concepts of ancestors and landscape are not necessarily shared by all contemporary Pagans. Many Pagans are suspicious of concepts they see as either right-wing or "fluffy" (overly New Age oriented).
There are two main strands of Druidry, the countercultural (associated with road protests and similar events) and the philosophical (more middle class). The latter are generally inconspicuous.
Druidry and the Pagan revival are a very diverse phenomenon which cannot be easily pigeonholed. Contemporary Pagans are drawn from a range of backgrounds and include many professionals and scientists. Adherents generally emphasise liberal, rational and tolerant views. Very few Pagans are militant, though some are becoming activists around the issues of access to sacred sites, reburial and the use of chalk figures for 'frivolous' purposes. In some of these issues, Pagan concerns may align with those of the Heritage sector.
The experience of Druidry
"As with most other streams of indigenous wisdom, the Druidic tradition has always been predominantly an oral tradition. Whether in a forest grove or sitting in front of a crackling hearth, the Druid tradition is a mouth-to-ear transmission of an ancient 'practical mysticism' that can guide and inspire us to live with the earth in harmony.” - Frank Mac Eowen, author of The Mist-Filled Path, The Spiral of Memory and Belonging, and The Old Celtic Way of Seeing
What is Druidry? A Spiritual Path, a way of life, a philosophy, Druidry is all of these… Druidry today is alive and well, and has migrated around the world forming a wonderful web of people who honour and respect the Earth and the sacred right to life of all that is part of the Earth. Like a great tree drawing nourishment through its roots, Druidry draws wisdom from its ancestral heritage. There is a saying in Druidry that ‘The great tree thrives on the leaves that it casts to the ground’. Druidry today does not pretend to present a replica of the past, rather it is producing a new season’s growth. - Cairistiona Worthington, The Beginner’s Guide to Druidry
Druid beliefs
- Threefold nature of the Divine (Mother, Father and Child)
- Awen – the spirit that pervades everything
- Druids can be polytheist, pantheist, animist, atheist, even Christian
- Practices are more important than beliefs
- Diversity is healthy and natural
- The Otherworld - the place we travel to when we die. But we can also visit it during our lifetime in dreams, in meditation, under hypnosis, or in ‘journeying’, when in a shamanic trance.
- Reincarnation; cyclical nature of reality
- Everything is interconnected
- Based on ancient Celtic beliefs
Philip Carr-Gomm (2006), What do Druids Believe? Granta
Druid values
- Reverence and respect for all creatures
- Peacefulness
- Wisdom, creativity, love
- Taking responsibility and feeling empowered
- The circle of all beings
- The power of trust
- Integrity
- The value of the opposite
- Being of value to others and the world
“St Patrick was said to have asked Oisin, the son of Fionn Mac Cumhall, what sustained his people before the advent of Christianity, to which he replied: “the truth that was in our hearts, and strength in our arms, and fulfilment in our tongues.”
Druid practices
- Druid circles start with a ritual, followed by an eisteddfod (sharing of music and poetry and the arts), followed by a feast
- Three grades: Bard, Ovate, Druid
- Bards – creativity (poetry, song, storytelling)
- Ovates – healing, shamanic practices
- Druids – magic (?)
- Environmental activism
- Living in nature; communing with nature
Druid festivals
Samhuinn (Hallowe'en)
Alban Arth(u)an – Light of Winter / Light of Arthur (Winter Solstice)
Imbolc – festival of Brigit, goddess of poetry, healing & smithcraft
Alban Eilir – Light of Spring / Spring Equinox
Beltane (May Day)
Alban Hefin – Light of Summer
Lughnasadh (Lammas)
Alban Elfed – Light of Autumn / Autumn Equinox
Druid groups
AOD – Ancient Order of Druids (1792)
Kevanvod Tud Donn (France, 1936)
OBOD – Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids (1964)
VAOD – Vereinigter Alter Orden der Druiden (Germany)
BDO – British Druid Order
GOD – Glastonbury Order of Druids
SOD – Secular Order of Druids
NOD – New Order of Druids (Belgium)
COD – Cotswold Order of Druids
and many more...
Further reading
- Debunking some claims about Druidry by Bo Williams
- Living Druidry by Bo Williams
- OBOD - Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids
- Wikipedia entry on Neo-Druidism
- Wikipedia article on historical druidry
- Pagan Wiki page on Druidry
- Pagan Wiki articles on Druidry
- Philip Carr-Gomm (2006), What do Druids Believe? Granta
- Ronald Hutton (2007), The Druids: A History. Hambledon Continuum
- Graham Harvey (1997), Contemporary Paganism: Listening People, Speaking Earth. New York University Press
- British Druid Order
- BBC News, Tuesday, 6 August, 2002: When a druid isn't a druid, http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2173194.stm
- Robin Herne (2004), Confessions of a Celt, http://www.manygods.org.uk/articles/traditions/confessions.html
- Ronald Hutton (2003), Witches, Druids and King Arthur, London: Hambledon and London
- Pathways To Druidry: A Case Study of Ár nDraíocht Féin by Michael T. Cooper, Ph.D. (Trinity International University, Deerfield Illinois, USA)
- Issues facing contemporary druidry by Emma Restall-Orr
Further viewing
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